Hi friends, welcome back to the Money Girl Podcast.

I'm Laura Adams, the author of Money Girl Smart Moves to Grow Rich.

Life is unpredictable. That's why you need the right kinds of insurance to stay safe from unforeseen expenses.

One insurance product you should never

go without is health insurance. Accidents, emergencies, and illnesses can easily

derail your financial goals and dreams if you don't have health coverage to fall back on.

I'll tell you how a high deductible health plan can save you money so you and your finances stay healthy.

A high deductible health plan is an insurance

policy with a higher annual deductible than a typical health policy. A deductible

is the amount you have to pay out of pocket each year for covered services and

expenses before your insurance kicks in and pays them for you. For 2011 to be

considered a high deductible health plan, a policy deductible must be between $1,200 and $5,950 if it covers just one person.

For family policies, the deductible can be twice that amount from

2,400 up to 11,900. In exchange for having higher potential out-of-pocket

expenses, one benefit you get from choosing a high-deductible

health plan is paying substantially lower premiums.

In other words, the insurance costs less because it doesn't start paying your medical bills until you've met

a higher annual deductible.

However, high deductible plans usually provide preventative care benefits, like annual

physicals, well child care, screening services

and immunizations regardless of the deductible amount.

That means they're automatically covered for you even if you haven't met your annual deductible.

...